Iontronic pressure sensors are promising in robot haptics because they can achieve high sensing performance using nanoscale electric double layers (EDLs) for capacitive signal output. However, it is challenging to achieve both high sensitivity and high mechanical stability in these devices. Iontronic sensors need microstructures that offer subtly changeable EDL interfaces to boost sensitivity, while the microstructured interfaces are mechanically weak. Here, we embed isolated microstructured ionic gel (IMIG) in a hole array (28 × 28) of elastomeric matrix and cross-link the IMIGs laterally to achieve enhanced interfacial robustness without sacrificing sensitivity. The embedded configuration toughens and strengthens the skin by pinning cracks and by the elastic dissipation of the interhole structures. Furthermore, cross-talk between the sensing elements is suppressed by isolating the ionic materials and by designing a circuit with a compensation algorithm. We have demonstrated that the skin is potentially useful for robotic manipulation tasks and object recognition.
A novel
CO2-responsive cotton as an eco-friendly adsorbent
derived from poly(4-acryloyloxybenzophenone-co-2-(dimethylamino)
ethyl methacrylate) and cotton was fabricated via a facile and fast
dip-coating method. As expected, upon CO2 stimulation,
the protonated cotton presented CO2-induced “on–off”
selective adsorption behaviors toward anionic dyes owing to electrostatic
interactions. The adsorption isotherms and kinetics of the CO2-responsive cotton toward anionic dyes obeyed the Langmuir
isotherm and pseudo-second-order kinetics models, respectively. It
is noteworthy that the CO2-responsive cotton exhibited
high adsorption capacity and ultrafast adsorption rate toward anionic
dyes with the maximum adsorption capacities of 1785.71 mg g–1 for methyl orange (MO), 1108.65 mg g–1 for methyl
blue (MB), and 1315.79 mg g–1 for naphthol green
B (NGB), following the adsorption equilibrium times of 5 min for MO,
3 min for MB, and 4 min for NGB. Moreover, the CO2-responsive
cotton also exhibited high removal efficiency toward anionic dyes
in synthetic dye effluent. Additionally, the CO2-responsive
cotton could be facilely regenerated via heat treatment under mild
conditions and presented stable adsorption properties even after 15
cycles. Finally, the as-prepared CO2-responsive cotton
exhibited outstanding antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus. In summary, this novel CO2-responsive cotton can be viewed as a promising eco-friendly adsorbent
material for potential scalable application in dye-contaminated wastewater
remediation.
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